Moon
by BishoujoJade
Summary: How do you explain feelings that aren't supposed to exist? That feel traitorous and leave you exposed but at the same time brighten the world drenched in darkness? Orihime will try...because he deserves that much.


Moon

"_I envy because of the heart"_

_ -Uliquorria-__  
_

Orihime could only hear one thing besides the incessant humming or the ridiculous opening and closing of the fan that belonged to the man who sat across from her. The slow methodical 'clunk' of the bamboo water fountain located on one of the shelves in the larger than necessary room. She never quite understood that. Ignoring whatever the man in the room was saying, she voiced her concern.

"You have so many big open spaces here….why is this space so big? There is all this room around me; around you. Surrounding me, enveloping me…swallowing me. I-It's like it's everywhere."

"Would you prefer a smaller space, Inoue-san?"

She glanced looked down at her hands, small and frail. Powerful, power-filled…yet still weak. "I-I…No. I wouldn't. Then I'd feel trapped. Small places make me feel trapped." She hesitated, looking out of the only window in the room. It was very large; so large that it almost took up the entire wall. It was large, and you could open a section of it, if you wanted to. It had no bars. She could fly out of the window is she wanted to. Into the sky. The real sky. Into the sunlight. There was sunlight on the other side, not darkness. No moon, just sunlight.

"What's wrong Inoue-san?"

"Ano…I mean I just don't understand, Urahara-san. I'm FINE. I-am-fine. There is nothing wrong with me. Why am I here?"

Urahara turned slightly in his chair, placing his scroll and pen down on the table in front of her. He graced the woman sitting on the couch a warm smile before leaning forward.

"Inoue Orihime. You're not being held her against your own will. You are not trapped. You can walk out of my office at any time. Remember that. You-are-free. But your friends…they still seem to think you're trapped, that you're living a life being held against your own free will."

"HE IS NOT…." The sunset hair girl took a moment to breathe. To calm herself.

"I am not trapped, I am not being held against my will. I AM free. I understand that. My friends…they're the ones. They don't understand." Her hands curled into tiny fist at her sides. "Not like I'm expecting them to. But this is none of their business. They weren't there…. I WAS."

Orihime inwardly screamed. This was her third session. Three times she'd traveled here and three times it had been a complete waste of her time. She should have said no. She should have told them to leave her alone, leave IT alone.

This was all the result of a simple inward comment she made. One that accidently slipped out of her mouth, out of the deepest corners of her heart, that'd she let no man, or woman privy too. Why? Because it was her secret, her happy place, her place of peace. Well, the word peaceful might not be the best word for it. Ano, well thinking about it, yeah, peaceful works. In the eye of the storm, peace would be an appropriate word. Outside of the storm, though, there was confusion, animosity, terror. Yet, even deeper there was something else. Caring, friendship, curiosity…and a bright, although very small and fragile petal that could have some day blossomed into adoration? Love? She wasn't sure, she'd never be sure. There wasn't a possibility of that flower blooming. There was no hope, no chance of that now.

It took the very last second, to realize what it all meant. Her dependency on Ichigo to rescue her, the declarative statement it made. There were winners. There were losers. In this game, winners LIVED. Losers…well, then didn't. That wasn't something she had a mental handle on as she thought on, wish upon, the possibility of escaping, of him winning, of them all winning.

But as he faded, as the only proof that he walked this place, that his life had affected other lives, affected HER life, that he wasn't just a pawn, that he wasn't just the enemy, that he wasn't just an aloof and emotionless power hungry monster, dissipated into the night sky; she could only think of one thing.

She had lost.

From time to time, that thought would strike her heart. And in a moment of weakness, a moment of reflection, she whispered it. "I'm lost Ulquiorra…"

Oh, all the people in the world to hear her, it had to be him. He never heard her before, not when her lips softly called for him at night, when her arms reached for his touch, when her heart wished for his warmth. Her never saw her, he never knew her. Never interested in her words, never interested in her thoughts or her feelings. In her heart.

He never felt it. The fire in her eyes when she looked at him. He never tasted the saltiness of her tears when she cried for him. He never heard the "I love you" in her voice, every time she called his name. But he, of all people…heard her this one time when he was the last person on this earth she wanted to hear.

Thus starting one of the biggest arguments she'd ever had.

They would never understand that because of that, because of _him_, and his interest in her, his curiosity for her, the fact that he HEARD her, every word she said…because of that, she wasn't the same anymore. He taught her how to stand up for herself, how to embrace the power within her, the power of her voice, the power of her worth.

She was a woman…THE woman. The one diamond hidden under the piles of "trash" that sparked his interest. He had told her many times of her weakness, how it was despising to him, how her tears were despicable. She literally was the strongest human he knew. He knew Shinigami, he knew Hollow, he'd never known a human as brave as her, yet as kind as her. He never understood the power of human emotion. It was foolish to him, yet undeniably powerful in itself. She embraced his words; let them wash over her and through her and around her. He breathed life into the shell of the woman she was; he empowered her into a new life.

And in the midst of this argument she tried to explain that to Kurosaki, to Rukia, Ishida and Sado. They didn't understand. They didn't WANT to understand. How she didn't hate him, how he protected her, how he entertained her, how he cared for her. They blanched at the words.

"Care? Care for you Inoue? That man cared for nothing but serving that bastard Aizen. Don't get me wrong, I respect Ulquiorra, he was a worthy opponent. Stopped me…" he paused, and glanced at Ishida, "from making a huge mistake. But that doesn't change the fact that he kidnapped you without a word, turned you into a traitor in the eyes of Soul Society, kept you away from your friends…"

"I..." She looked towards the ground, scuffing her shoe against the pavement "I-I appreciate everything you've done for me Kurosaki-kun! I do! Rukia, Sado! Ishida! I do! And I wish you'd never heard what I said. My feelings…"

Ichigo rolled his eyes and ran a frustrated hand through his head. But she stilled him with a look. "Like I said, my… feelings about him don't diminish the sacrifice you guys made in rescuing me. I am and will always be forever grateful. But at the end of the day, it was I."

She took the time to look up, connecting with each of her friends own stare. "I was the one who was kidnapped, against my will, yes. But it was he, who protected me against those OTHER monsters of Las Noches. It was he, who visited me when I was lonely, he who kept me company. He who was interested in my words and thoughts. And in the very end, it was he who understood me the most. "

She inhaled deeply, the frustration she felt running hot in her veins. If she wanted to show them she was powerful, she'd do it now, in the best way she knew how. Honesty. She straightened her back, poured strength into her voice.

"Did you know, Kurosaki-kun?"

He turned towards her warily, almost frightened of what revelation she looked to pull out of bag of emotions. "Did I know what?"

"That my name was Orihime?"

He raised a careful eyebrow at her, before eyeing Ishida and Sado, before looking back in her direction. "Of course I knew that."

"Yet, you have never called me Orihime. I've always been Inoue. Inoue Inoue Inoue. I…" she laughed softly to herself, the slight blush warming her cheeks seeming faintly silly at this point. "I used to think you were the sun. The sun and I constantly orbited you. I wanted to be like a star, bright like the sun. But a star, a little star like me can't illuminate your sun, can't catch the sun's fancy, Kurosaki-kun. You were too bright, or I was not bright enough I gather. So you never saw me. Never noticed me. Never noticed the way I looked at you, or the way I said your name. Never knew I wanted five different lifetimes so I could fall in love five different times, in five different ways with one man. Never noticed. Never. … because I'm just Inoue. Inoue Inoue Inoue."

"Inoue...what, I don't understa-"

Her feelings for Ichigo had somewhat dulled since her abduction to Hueco Mundo. It wasn't as if he wasn't deserving of her adoration. But at some point, the simple truth about adoration is you want it returned. She knew Ichigo cared for her…as if she were his little sister. That, was something she had once strived to change. But she finally realized it, looking at the moon one night. That place in his heart had been filled whether he knew it or not. And slowly the place in _her _heart that she had stored his smile was slowly being replaced by a quiet man stoic man's frown. She felt like a traitor in her subtly growing feelings for him. But what was she to do? She'd never been on to deny feelings, not to herself. And one day she woke up, and realized that her friend was just that. Her friend, while her caretaker…he was something different.

She waved her hand flippantly and shrugged. "It's not for you to understand anymore. I don't care if you understand. You…you needed the moon in your orbit;" she softly glanced at Rukia, who held her gaze before she turned away, "a balance to your luminosity. Pure black blade to pure white blade. Black Sun to White Moon…makes sense now…"

Ichigo's bright orbs widened for a fraction of a second, a single ray of understanding. He too, glanced at Rukia over his shoulder. _His moon._

"What I DO need for you to understand is, because of that situation…because…ano, because he kidnapped me, and held me prisoner and effectively "killed" me, I am better. I'm OKAY. He killed the timid, insecure, shy and wounded woman I was. My voice is still soft, yes and my eyes are still kind…but my back is straight, and there is a tough layer around my heart…hierro, maybe, I don't know. "

Ichigo looked as lost as ever. His face showed every ounce of confusion in this. He again looked at Sado and Ishida. They couldn't reveal anymore to him, as they were slightly lost themselves. Rukia stepped forward, still a worried frown on her face. "This is a lot, Orihime. I see…you're passionate about this…But this isn't something we're going to fully understand. " Quietly she walked up to Orihime and linked arms with her, pulling her away from the group of frustrated men, save Sado who still looked slightly confused but nothing altogether changing from his stoic appearance. She sat them down near the trunk of a tree, away from their ears.

"Oi! Rukia! We're not done talking! There's more to-"

"Shut up, idiot! Do you want me to handle this or do you want to continue to fail as miserably as you have been?"

"I-I wasn't…" Ichigo turned sharply from the midget, wishing he could go over there and shake her, or something. "Dumb bitch." He muttered under his breath.

"I heard that, you flatfooted simpleton.

Rolling her eyes and frowning at the situation she turned from the Neanderthal. Orihime noticed the stern look on Rukia's face and braced herself for a more personalized assault form the small Shinigami. But when she turned towards Orihime, Rukia had a slight smile on her face. Well, a smirk. It wasn't often that Rukia actually smiled…at her anyways.

"I…I met Hollow Ichigo once." She stated simply.

Orihime gasped. "The…horns and the…hair…and the ...geh...the claws?" Her eyes widened to the size of saucers.

Rukia scrunched her nose up at her and tried not to laugh at her comical response. "No…not THAT Hollow Ichigo. You and Ishida are the only ones who've seen that. He has…has another side of his hollow. Calculating, cruel, maniacal. I've met that Hollow before. Nothing like the mindless monster you've describe. He was…methodical with his cruelty. He taunted me, reminded me of things I had tried to forget."

Orihime raised one curious eyebrow. "L-Like what Rukia-san? That is if you don't mind me asking. "

"Reminded me that I'd killed someone dear to me…and that because I see that person in Ichigo…that's…that's the reason I'm drawn to him. Drawn to protect him and…" Rukia sighed running a hand over her face tiredly. "What I'm trying to say is that it didn't affect how I saw Ichigo. This person had Ichigo's face, his body, his Zanpaktou, even a weird creepy variation of his voice. I stared into the darkness of him, and it didn't change how I…felt ab-about him." She glanced a worried look at Orihime. After the speech she had just given about that idiot, maybe telling her this wasn't the right time, but she needed her to know, that she understood what looking into the darkness and still seeing the light meant.

"Even so, it was hard not to flinch at Ichigo afterwards. That scared me. We needed to trust each other if we were going to fight together. So…I went and talked to someone about it. The only other person I knew who had seen that...THING inside of Ichigo."

"Seen?"

"Urahara."

"What could he possibly…" Orihime scrunched her face in confusion.

Rukia laughed. "That man has seen every kind of darkness there is, and he still smiles. He's brilliant and very insightful. How do you think the Vizards are running around here, without a dying grudge to invade Seireitei? He is weird, yes. But there is a lot of wisdom behind those creepy calculating eyes of his. That idiot talks to him, too."

"To Urahara?" Rukia nodded. Orihime scratched the back of her head. She didn't see how he could help. "I-I guess so Rukia-san. But this isn't going to change how I feel about that situation. I just…"

"Go talk to him. We may never understand…but that isn't your problem. I'll handle the idiot." Rukia smiled widened. "I'm supposed to be the least understanding one, eh? I was raised to despise Hollow and Hollow like. But…" glancing at the buffoon red head who kept trying to look as if he wasn't trying his damnedest to eavesdrop on the conversation, "I…I do understand."

This is how Orihime found herself, the third visit in, deep in the back of Urahara's obviously larger than it appears shop, talking to him while he doodled on a pad, asking silly asinine questions.

"I understand you were there, but were you really? It's not uncommon for victims of Stockholm syndrome to-"

"Ano…what is that?"

Urahara clicked the heels of his get before standing to his feet. He waltzed over to a stack of books in a corner near the window, choosing one.

"The textbook for Stockholm Syndrome is," flipping through a few pages until he stopped on what seemed to be the correct one, "paradoxical psychological phenomenon wherein hostages express adulation and have positive feelings towards their captors that appear irrational in light of the danger or risk endured by the victims, essentially mistaking a lack of abuse from their captors as an act of kindness."

Orihime was a bright girl, so she got the gist of it. "So…you think I feel this way because…because he was kind to me…"

"Partially; that's what I believe you technically have. Despite the obvious harshness of your situation, you harbor some good will towards the man who caused it."

She fidgeted in her seat with some of the implications. "Well, technically the man who caused it is Aizen, Urahara-san."

"Does that take away from your captor's hand in your abduction?"

"No, but-"

"Did he not steal you away without your permission?"

"Yeah, but-"

"Did he not lock you away, terrorizing and thr-"

"YES! YES HE DID! Okay! Don't you think I know that? Don't you think I KNOW what happened TO ME? I was there! I saw it! I saw everything; I witnessed and dealt with everything. IT WAS ME. You don't have to remind me." She placed her face into the upturn palms of her hands, letting a frustrated scream into them. Then it was silent.

"Damn it. I'm crying." She released a shaky breath. "He'd be angry with me right now. Crying over something this silly."

"He didn't appreciate emotions?"

Orihime laughed, a humorless one, as she wiped away the tears that were streaking down her face. "No…not appreciate. He didn't understand them. He couldn't touch them, couldn't see them, so in his mind, they didn't exist. They were a weakness that caused irrational thinking. He was a warrior, a fighter. He didn't see how these emotions could better him in that realm. At first."

Lying completely back against the sofa, she let the waves of sunset orange hair fall down the back of it. Staring at the ceiling, she sighed. "At first. I slapped him, you know. Ha! Me. Can you imagine? Right across the face. I thought I was dead. But as he stared back down at me, his face aloof and blank, I realized the emotion that he believed he didn't own, shown in his eyes. Brightly, and there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn't stop that light from shining, no matter how dark it was. No matter how dark he was. No matter how dark Las Noches was."

"What did you see, Orihime." He retook his seat, crossing his hands under his chin.

"He...I saw curiosity. Surprise and curiosity. Not anger, rage, contempt. And as he left I examined what he'd said before he'd pissed me off enough to endanger my life that way."

Urahara leaned closer. "Which was…?"

"_If it_ _were me, and my friends entered Hueco Mundo without first gauging their strength, I'd be infuriated by their stupidity_." Orihime giggled at this. "He...he wasn't trying to be cruel. He wouldn't know the first thing about "trying to be" cruel. He knew nothing but facts. Everything was black and white to him. He couldn't understand me…"she fingered a wisp of her hair around her finger, "me and all my color."

"Don't get me wrong. He wasn't kind. He wasn't this chivalrous knight that came and swept me off my lonely feet. He wasn't kind. But he wasn't cruel. He wasn't malicious. He wasn't like the others. I was extremely glad he was my caretaker. I could just_ imagine_ how my captivity would have gone, had he not been."

"And you took this…as a sign he loved you?"

"I never once said Ulquiorra loved me. I don't know his true feelings for me, because he seem to only gained a grasp on them as he died. He probably couldn't understand something as complex as love. All I know is that he…and he alone gave me strength those quiet, sorrowful days when I had no one else. That is all I am saying."

"What about you Orihime. How do YOU feel?"

She giggled again, trying to hide the faint blush of her cheeks. "You haven't known me very long, Urahara-san. I am very prone at entering situations that are usually one sided. I'm sure this is as one sided as they get."

"So you think this is one sided? That he held you in no regard higher than an interesting human he'd been ordered to take care of?"

Laying her head up against her fisted hand she shrugged. "Ano, like I said, I have no idea. But I do know he must have felt something. A connection. Before him…he died, he asked if I feared him. I did not, and I told him so. The look in his eyes…" Feeling restless she stood, stretching high towards the ceiling before she took a step towards the window. Looking out over the landscaped lot to the back of Urahara's shop, she smiled. "When I'm almost sleep at night, right before, you know, you lose yourself to your dreams, I hear this poem in the back of my mind. His voice…"

"A poem? "

"Hn. Ano, it's…quite beautiful. But I've heard it every night. "

_I envy because of the heart__  
__I glutton because of the heart__  
__I covet because of the heart__  
__I am prideful because of the heart__  
__I sloth because of the heart__  
__I rage because of the heart__  
__Because of the heart__  
__I lust for everything about you_

Urahara scratched the stubble at his chin, smiling secretively under his hat. "My, my, that is quite beautiful Inoue-san."

She placed a nervous hand behind her head and laughed. "Yeah…it is isn't it? But…it's how I know I'm okay. Because at the end of the day, I know he felt it. That's all that matters."

Urahara leaned back in his chair, the audible click of his fan opening echoed in the silence of the room. He wasn't quite sure why they kept running to him, to reveal these secrets and darkness in their hearts. He figured he'd be the last person they'd turn to, though collectively they sought out his advice first. Strange, none the less, all he had were questions. No theories and definitely no answers. His quirky sense of humor wasn't a solution either. So he asked leading questions, they provided the answers, their own answers, and their own salvation to their own mysteries.

Truth be told, they were all literally fucked in the head. Who wouldn't be? Nothing they experienced, not even as experienced Shinigami could be considered normal. How can it be? When you die, you expect to live a life of peace. We've been taught that heaven is our destination. Streets paved with gold, angels singing, harps playing, clouds and most importantly, peace. So to end up in Soul Society, where poverty, loneliness, duty and even death are the reality of your afterlife…no. No one could be normal. Normalcy ends when you die. But what about if you're still alive?

Orihime, Sado, Ishida, and especially Ichigo. The duality of their situations intensified the insanity of it all. So when they came to him, one by one, the gift and curse of clarity and confusion all wrapped in one…he listened. But he knew, he of all people knew, that their decisions were their own. They would choose their own paths, their own feelings. The one thing he strived to teach them, even if it was through his own actions was that their life was THEIRS to live. So as Orihime sat before him, claiming she was fine, he believed her.

"If you believe that you are fine, then you are Orihime. It is not your responsibility to make them…to make him understand, you do know that? The lesson you learned was for you and you alone. That is all I have to offer you. "

Orihime whipped around to face the man, trying to gauge his eyes from the darkness his hat provided. Could it all be that simple?

She turned to leave, walking straight for the door without another word, but a thought snagged at her brain. "Um…Urahara-san?"

He quirked an inquisitive brow at her, wondering what other questions the young woman had for him. "Yes Inoue-san?"

"Where do you think he is now? I mean… do you think…"

He snapped open his fan, to hide the glee in her question. He had often wondered how far the rules bent themselves. They were pretty straightforward in their statements., yes. But Zanpaktou death or …or what? Surely the Spirit King didn't have a stick that far up his ass.

"Well. That is something I've been wrestling with myself. All of the Hollows, Arrancar, and Espada that were killed by Zanpaktou, contingent on their human lives on earth, should be showing up in Soul Society soon. Based on the reports, Ulquiorra-san's life was ended as a result of his injuries, and not necessarily at the end of Ichigo's Cero. That leads me to believe that he is neither here nor there. Spirit particles….back into the reincarnation cycle. Maybe somewhere in Soul Society. Maybe somewhere in Hueco Mundo still. Who knows?"

Finding no other option that to be satisfied with that answer, she left.

She went home that night, with a perchance of a smile on her face. She fingered the bracelet that began as bindings that tore her away from the freedom she once had. But now it served as her only link to man who had on more than one occasion changed her life. She never expected anyone to understand. Understand that on some days, she despised him. Was she really that weak to begin with? No, she was strong. But on other days, she understood that HE understood that and he wanted her strength to shine. Shine as if she were the sun, for he was the moon.

And she'd laugh when her thoughts made those complete loops that drove her crazy. It was like meeting him and losing him all over again, only to know that one day she'd meet him again in the lovely folds of her mind. It quite literally was insanity. But as life altering as it was, there was serenity in her evolution. Would she always be timid, yes. Shy? Of course. But strong? Willful? Determined? Yes. Yes she would be.

As she closed her eyes, the poem that always granted her access to her dreams echoed softly in her head, she smiled herself to sleep.

O

oOo

O

-Years later-

She looked up into the mirror as she secured the hairpin that would hold the veil in place. To her left was the even bustier maid of honor, trying to coerce the bride into apply more makeup that she was used to wearing. Rukia continually slapped at her hands, while Momo doubled over in laughter at the pout Matsumoto threw in Rukia's face for not allowing her the fun of gussing the bride up.

Imagine this day? Well sort of. Her conversation years and years ago, had literally forced that big pumpkin head of a man and the short, feisty Shinigami to stop acting like they didn't see, or feel what everyone around them had noticed from jump. And by years, it means years and years….AFTER their deaths. Funny thing, is destiny, is destiny. Everything happens for a reason. Exactly how it's supposed to.

And no, they didn't die in a blaze of glory or at the end of the enemy's weapon. A car accident. Yep. Leaving from Ichigo's party after learning he'd been accepted into medical school. They'd plan leaving from his apartment to visit a pub downtown to continue the party, when…well they don't know what really happened.

All she knows is, the lot of them; Ichigo, Sado, Tatskui, Keigo, Ishida, Mizurio and herself were all enjoying the elevated happiness of the evening when a truck slid of the road in the wintery conditions and apparently none of them survived. She doesn't remember what happened after that.

Of course, since they had lived pretty virtuous lives on earth, they made their way to Soul Society as all good souls do. At some time, they'd had all been living in Rukongai, totally ignorant of their human lives until Sado was recognized (and how could he NOT be). Because of his efforts in the Winter War and the fact that he'd be a very capable Shinigami, the Captain Commander "commanded" his memory to be unsealed, thus remembering everything from his life as Sado. (He'd been going by the name of Shino until then). Eventually after years of searching Ichigo and Ishida were found, and then her. The others would remain without their memories, and Ishida continued to live his life in Rokungai, as he refused to become a Shinigami.

So, long of the short, Ichigo and Rukia were reunited and then love before a baby carriage, is what they say, right?

Rukia's grunt brought her back to the present, as she again slapped away Matsumoto's hand. "Matsumoto-san, she's not going to let you apply the makeup the way you want. You should stop trying you know." Orihime giggled into her hand as the fukutaichou glared at her. "I am only trying to make her the most beautifulest bride the world has ever seen. She NEVER gets pretty. She's so serious!"

Turning to Rukia, "Just a LITTLE bit of stain for your lips? Just thiiiiiiink how Ichigo will swoon at your sun kissed lips!"

Peering out the side of her eyes, she grunted again. "Fine, Matsumoto. Anymore than that, and I'll make sure the sake reserves revoke your entrance for YEARS to come." Matsumoto snorted and rolled her eyes. "I've got Anjou-san wrapped right around my finger. Try that if you want, it's futile."

"Nothing is impossible for a Kuchiki, Matsumoto."

"Ah, but for a Kurosaki? Maybe."

"Why you big nin-" Rukia's rant was interrupted by a knock at the door of her changing chambers. Orihime pulled herself away from the ensuing argument to open the door. A slightly taller Kotetsu greeted her at the door with a wave. "Ohayo, Inoue-fuku-Kidocho! There is a messenger out front, who called for you by name! He was a man, so I couldn't let him back, but he is waiting for you out front. He's not a Shinigami, so he's with a few members of the Onmitsukidō with him."

Orihime smiled. She had been promoted vice captain of the Kido Corps just this past summer, and wasn't used to showing her face AND being addressed as a member of the Kido Corps at the same time. Pleasures of being promoted, I guess. "Ah! Thank you Kotestsu-fukutaichou! Did he say what he wanted? It's usually against regulations …."

The other woman just shrugged. "Kurosaki-san must have wanted some more flowers delivered for Kuchiki-san, because he's holding an armful of them. Romantic, ne? And apparently it was last minute because they ran straight from the flower shop to the manor." Orihime smiled. That would be a lovely surprise! Turning to the girls behind her still arguing over Rukia's makeup she called out. "Be right back! Seems our bride has another gift from an over anxious groom waiting for her at the door!" She giggled at Rukia's blushing cheeks as she closed the door and headed for the main entrance to Rukia's family manor.

Sliding open the shoji door, she frowned as she could find herself only being able to see the top of the messenger's head. She glanced at the guards that Kotetsu mentioned and chuckled. Redirecting her attention back to the young man in front of her, she cleared her throat. "Messenger-san?"

He jumped slightly at her voice, as he didn't see her approaching, and then lowered the flowers.

Orihime gasped something terrible, taking a shaky step back away from the door. Messy black hair. Stoic green eyes. Aloof and disinterested facial appearances. Then he spoke. She swallowed thickly.

"Inoue Orihime?" A full length shiver attacked the woman, leaving her mouth gaping open, and her eyes the size of saucers. The man looked confused by this, and graced one of the guards a side-glance, before directing his confused stare back at the startled woman before him. "Are you Inoue Orihime?"

Blinking, she shook her head, trying to will her mouth to work. After it gaping open and close like a fish, she managed, somehow (thank the Kamis) to utter a single word. "Uliqu...Ulquiorra?"

What has she said earlier about destiny? Ha.

oOo

**A/N: I came up with this after actually seeing a picture of Rukia and Ichigo's blade up against each other. First thing that hit me was, strangely, Orihime moon was Ulquiorra. Then the next thing I could thought of was ****Stockholm (shrugs..don't ask lol) I**** don't know if this is a different approach to them, but to me, it's still sweet, yet…as realistic as one can be in the world of Bleach. I literally started typing and ended up with this. It may stay as a longshot. I may not. Not decided yet! But go Ulquihime! I'll be back to Delicate Covenant soon, you Ranma fans **

**Oh yeah! That poem is from the ****Volume 40 Ulquiorra cover. **


End file.
